Run Away
by Melinda Penn
Summary: After around three days without Yami, Yuugi goes generally insane. To him, his only option is to run away. But what happens when the people he's hiding from find his hide away spot and /he's/ with them. Atem x Yuugi M.
1. Insanity Was Bliss

**AN/Disclaimer: I no own Yu-gi-oh! Oh yah, and just saying, when I was trying to fix something in here my computer went crazy and made me delete everything that was formatted. I've gone through, and I don't think I lost anything, but just thought you might want to know. :D :End AN/Disclaimer.**

Three days. That's how long Yuugi lasted semi-sanely without Yami – but that was more out of shock than anything. And that's when he fell apart. That's when things began to deteriorate. Nobody noticed at first. How could they? It was minute changes that without talking to him seriously or hearing his inner most thoughts nobody could guess at or see. Nobody knew. So he broke apart. He broke apart more than anybody could see. He left his friends behind – how could he not? If everything hardly related to Yami tore at Yuugi's heart, then what about the things that truly were? His friends were just another painful reminder.

The first person who found out about his unstable state was somebody who used to hate Yuugi. Seto Kaiba. The only reason why? After six months of eating himself alive Yuugi flipped. He couldn't be there anymore. One small note to his grandpa and that was it. It read, "I'll be back when I'm back." And then he left. Two months after that found him walking into a restaurant and finding Kaiba there. It was odd, different, and weird. It was the longest place Yuugi ever stayed. And it hurt. They talked about everything – including Yami. The only reason Yuugi left was because of a drunken mistake and waking up the next day in bed with the older Kaiba. Seto told him that he was fine with it. That it was okay. But Yuugi was too afraid and hurt to do anything but run.

Yuugi kept running and hiding. Running and hiding. To the point he had nowhere to go. And he ended up in a small town. A town where he didn't think his past could catch up with him. He was ahead. And he wasn't about to let others catch up to him. Technically, he didn't even live in a city or town – he lived outside those borders in a place called Unincorporated Grant County. And he wasn't planning on leaving this time. He would stay here where no one could or would find him. He might've been lost, but he wasn't an idiot. He wasn't going to hide anymore. He just wasn't going to be found either. That was his logic. If nobody found him, then technically he was not hiding. He was only hiding once they came looking for him. Once they actually found and broke him.

And so Yuugi remained hidden but not hiding. In plain sight, he broke down even farther around strangers, hoping that nobody he knew would ever come.

-Line-

Yuugi dropped his pencil. "Why do I still draw?" he asked looking at his hand. Instantly, said hand was a puppet that could respond to him.

"Well, I don't know? Why would I know?" The hand said turning its 'face' towards the drawing. "It's a bird – do you even like birds? I know I don't, they peck me!" it cried.

"Well… I don't particularly like them around me, but I think they're beautiful to draw," Yuugi replied to his hand.

"Then you have your answer. It's that simple. You want to be a part of some beauty, so you draw it. You can draw whatever beauty your mind deems fit," Yuugi's hand said.

"Then why don't I draw…"

"Yami? Well, how am I supposed to know, it's your mind," the hand replied. Which is when it dawned on Yuugi exactly what he was doing.

"I'm talking to myself," Yuugi mumbled picking his pencil back up. He cursed his mind. It had brought Yami up. Why, why had his mind done that? Why did his mind always do that? Yami was gone. There was nothing anybody could do about that. Yuugi knew this, but it didn't make anything any easier. In fact, it made a lot of things a hell of a lot harder. To feel that useless was hell itself, no, past it. He couldn't do anything. He was no good. Yuugi took a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself. "Don't think like that, you're… worth something…" He let out an aggravated scream. He was sick of this, sick of hurting. But he was still the light. He could never kill himself.

No matter how much he wanted to.

-Line-

Yuugi couldn't believe his eyes, for a couple of reasons. All presented as the people in front of him. Okay, no. They were across the street, and only one of them had seen him, but he couldn't believe it. Jou, Seto, and Bakura all were walking across the street from Yuugi. And somebody else. Somebody Yuugi couldn't believe was there. It was a look alike to himself. A person who didn't exist anymore. Yami was gone! Yuugi was frozen as Bakura stopped and stared at him. Bakura stopped the others, just two words gracing his lips. Two words even Yuugi understood. They were, "Its Yuugi." And finally his feet unstuck. His eyes unlocked with Bakura's and he ran.

He actually heard them running after him.

"Yuugi?" the store owner asked as he came running in. It was a game shop and Yuugi was a regular. It was the closest place Yuugi could think of to run to.

"Four people are looking for me – do no tell them I'm here! Pretend that I don't exist. Pretend you never knew me. And just warning – one of them looks like me, but don't even mention he looks like me," Yuugi cried flinging himself over the counter and into the back room. "I'll be hiding!" Yuugi called.

The door opened and a voice yelled, "Yuugi, I know you're in here! This is exactly the kind of place you'd hide in." Said person cringed.

"What are you doing in my shop! And who is this 'Yuugi' you speak of? Hey – you're not allowed behind my counter!" Incoherent shouting ensued, and a bang as somebody was pushed into the counter, Yuugi presumed. After a brief moment of silence, the store owner said, "This here is my shop. And why might you be intruding and who are you?"

"I am sorry for the rudeness of my –"

A loud gasp interrupted the speaker from Jou. Yuugi yanked back from the doorway. The voice had drawn him forward. He had needed to know if it was really him. And they had caught him using the unintentional trap. He hid next to the doorway, stuck between coming out of his hiding place and having to face his friends or staying hidden and running away but loosing what was there again. There that shouldn't have been there. There was a scuffle and then another yell from the owner, "You are not going back there."

A brief moment of silence, and then, "Yuugi, I know you're back there, come out! Please!" Jou. Yuugi didn't budge.

"No! I'm not coming out!" Yuugi yelled back. Jou wouldn't make him budge.

"Yuugi! Please stop! Come out!" Jou yelled at him.

"I already said no!" Yuugi yelled back.

"But –"

"Jou, stop. This isn't working. Let me talk to him," he said. Yuugi poked his head back out. Just to the point where he could see him. Just Jou and him were in here. Not too bad, he could avoid them most likely. "Yuugi," he said quietly. "Why are you hiding from us? Why are you hiding from me?" He looked out a little bit farther from the back room. "Aibou, come out, for me. Please," he said. Yuugi stiffened, looking out even farther. He let out a small breath and met the crimson red eyes of Yami. He was here, somehow. He was here. Yuugi moved his foot, taking a small step back. He shook his head as Yami took a step towards him. "Yuugi, we've been looking for you for a long time. Please come out – Yuugi!" Yami's plea turned into a yell as Yuugi spun away from him and ran. Ran to the back door.

He flung the door open and ran straight into Bakura's arms. He struggled for a moment. Taller and older he was able to fling Bakura off of him. Yuugi was running before Seto even had a chance to move towards him. 'Why are my demons coming back to haunt me?' Yuugi wondered inside his mind. They couldn't be here… and yet they were. They continued to haunt him in the flesh now, rather than in memory. "Just leave me alone!" Yuugi yelled.

-Line-

Yuugi still wasn't sure how he managed to do it. He had somehow managed to run from them and evade capture. But he knew it wouldn't last long. He knew that they would find his apartment and trap him even farther. He wasn't going to let that happen. Yuugi sighed as he dropped the next clothing item into the bag. He was running again. He was beginning to really hate running. It made him feel like a coward, but he couldn't be found. He had finally stopped hiding, he didn't want to hide again. A soft knock on his door made Yuugi jump. Had they found him? Yuugi stiffened, staring at the door as if his life depended on who was on the other side. "Hey Yuugi, it's me, Alex," the store keeper called into his apartment. Yuugi let out a shaken sigh.

"Coming!" Yuugi called as he walked to the front door and opened it. Instantly he slammed it again, hearing a cry of pain from whichever one of them had stuck there foot in the door. Yuugi pressed against it with all his strength, but he wouldn't be able to hold it forever. "Alex, how could you?" he yelled at the person who had betrayed him, bringing the four people to his house. Somebody pushed against the door, hard, and Yuugi stumbled back, falling over from the force. He was back on his feet in a flash though, and locked eyes with Jou, and yelled, "Get out of my home!" pushing Jou out, just for Bakura to slide in after him. Yuugi paused, then slammed the door and locked every possible lock. He glared at Bakura before walking to a separate room and slamming that door as well.

The door opened. "I'm still here, you know," Bakura said, shutting the inner door behind him. There was a pause as Bakura neared the shaking man. Yuugi let out a small sound before wiping his face. "Yuugi… are you crying?" He kneeled next to him and touched his arm. Yuugi flinched away from his touch.

"Go away, go away, go away!" Yuugi cried, grabbing his head. "Just leave me be. I left for that reason; I wanted to be left alone. Why can't you just let me have my one wish?" Bakura walked over to Yuugi, taking hold of his hand, and placing his other on Yuugi's chin, making him look at him.

Bakura whispered, "Do you really want me to leave? All of us to leave?" Yuugi looked away, and Bakura once again made him meet his eyes. "Yuugi, please answer me, meet my eyes, and tell me the truth. Do you want us to leave? Do you truthfully want to be alone?" Yuugi yanked away, and curled into a ball.

"I don't know what I want… I don't want to be alone, but I don't want my demons to come back and haunt me," Yuugi whispered, crying. Bakura wrapped his arms around Yuugi's frame as he cried harder and harder, shaking more and more. Yuugi pressed into Bakura's embrace, unsure of everything he had thought he was positive about.

Fin…

**AN: Hope you enjoyed!**


	2. But Now I'm Happy

**AN/Disclaimer: Here is my next chapter. Sorry it took so long to update. Originally I was planning to make this a two-shot, but then I started typing, and now it's three chapters long. So, yah. I no own, Yu-Gi-Oh! I wish I did though, that would be awesome! Oh yah, I have no idea who's Ryou's implied past lover is. :End AN/Disclaimer.**

Yuugi stared at the man before him. He had not been having a good week, not in the slightest. He'd finally agreed to meet Yami thanks to Bakura – oh wait, no, he went by Ryou now. _/Why did he decide to go by his first name now?/_ Yuugi mused, glaring at Yami. "So what exactly do you want me to call you?" he asked. His voice was spiteful, angry, he sounded possibly even hateful. Yuugi didn't know why he was acting like this. He should've been ecstatic to see his past friend and partner back from the afterlife, but now, all he could bring himself to feel was spite, anger, and hate.

A brief pause, and then he said, "I go by Atem. That _is_ my name…" Yuugi nodded slowly. He was beginning to get super fed up with the situation.

"Well then, Atem. Have a nice day, I'll be leaving now. Goodbye," Yuugi growled, standing up and leaving the small café. Yuugi started running almost the instant he was out the door, until he ended up at a small park in the town. He frowned. He seemed to be doing far too much running these days. With a sigh he sat on a swing and frowned at the ground. He didn't want Atem to be back. I wasn't supposed to be here. He was supposed to be in the afterlife... happy…

He was supposed to be happy. _/Damn it!/_ Yuugi thought.

He wasn't sure how long he was there. He wasn't sure when he started crying. He wasn't sure how long he cried. He wasn't sure when it started raining. He wasn't sure why he was acting like this. He wasn't sure about a lot of things.

"Yuugi, I never thought of you as one to run away," Atem said.

He didn't look up, just said, "I'm not running away."

"Then tell me what you've been doing. Why you're here," Atem said. There was a creak as he sat on the swing next to him.

Yuugi shivered as he muttered, "I'm not running away. Just… avoiding."

"And freezing yourself to death. You've been shivering since I got here and you're soaking wet," Atem growled.

Yuugi looked up at him and said, "I happen to like the rain."

"But you don't have to stay out here to the point you can't even tell you're shivering! That's crazy!" Atem yelled.

Yuugi looked back to his feet. "I like the way it feels. It makes me numb to everything, even makes it harder for me to think. I suddenly become unattached… and I like the way it feels."

"Yuugi… why do you do this to yourself?"

"Why did you come back?" There, he'd said it.

"The spirits decided to give me a second chance at the one thing I never experienced as Pharaoh or here with you… though I would've liked to with you…" Atem said. Yuugi blinked… _/What did he… did that mean… was he… what?/_

Yuugi bit his lip. "Atem… what are you implying?"

"I'm not implying anything. Not yet. For now, just let me back into your life… I miss you, and this is not exactly the 'welcome back' I was expecting from the person who cried because I left," he said. "And Yuugi, please go inside, I don't want you getting sick from sitting out here," and left.

… "What just happened?"

-Line-

"Hey Yuug'! What up?" Said boy turned to face Jou and smiled.

"Nothing much, you?" Yuugi said. He was smiling, and made a small mental note to himself of how g'd damn good it felt to smile again!

However his mind wandered as they spoke.

_/It's nice to be in contact with my friends again too./_ He and Jou were back to old antics. Seto and him shared a… love hate relationship. Ryou and him were talking a lot, and Yuugi had to admit he felt bad for him. His lover of three years had walked out on him only two months ago without so much as a goodbye. Just gone. Atem and him… had been talking. And were probably at what anybody else would call a friendship status. He had a guess of what Atem had been saying… but he wasn't sure of how to go about it. Plus Atem seemed to be concentrated on us just talking in a friendly fashion again. A rumor he had heard through Ryou suddenly popped into his mind. "Hey Jou, is it true? About you and… well, Seto. You two are together?" he asked his friend.

Jou blushed, and looked away, but nodded. "It was kind of odd at first, but he really does have a sensitive side. He can be… sweet," Jou said.

"Not that I'm arguing, actually, I think you two are perfect together… just how did you go from nonstop arguing to dating?" Yuugi asked moving to standing by the window.

Jou sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Well, we got in a really big fight over nothing really, and I got in his face and he… he shoved me against a wall and kissed me. For a while we didn't talk about it, and if it got brought up we ended up fighting. But I… I told him eventually that I didn't want us to argue anymore. Not like that at the very least. I guess… I guess I've always really cared for him. One thing led to the next, and we ended up going on a date. Which led to… 'us.'"

He couldn't help but smile. Yuugi murmured, "That's actually kind of sweet."

"Yah," Jou breathed. "Hey Yuug', can I ask a question?"

"Uh sure, what is it, Jou?" Yuugi replied.

"Why did you… why did you run away? Especially when we found you and Atem was with us, why did you still run away?" he asked.

The answer to that question was easier said than done.

"I guess… it was the fact that I've been running, I've been trying to leave my past behind. It doesn't make much sense if you think about, but in my mind, because I missed an item of my past, I was running away from my past. Then, my past showed up on my doorstep, and I… I freaked out." Yuugi said quietly. He found himself trying to frown, but for some reason couldn't. He was too happy to frown, to be sad, to be upset. His friends made him happy, and Atem made him even happier than the usual friend would. He blushed. What did that mean? Yuugi had an idea, but he didn't know what to make of it.

Jou looked at him. "Hey, did Atem say why he came back. He blabbed a little something to us about the spirits and how he didn't want to talk about it. We never pushed him to explain. I figured he'd tell you, so… did he?"

"He told me the same thing he told you, basically. A little bit more, but the same general gist," Yuugi lied.

"Hey Yuug', tell me the truth here, what's up between you and Atem? Are you two… well… _/interested/_ in each other?" Jou asked. Yuugi blushed, bright red, as he looked at his friend.

"In-interested… in… Atem?" Yuugi stuttered.

"Come on, Yuugi. Is it really that crazy of an idea?" Jou asked.

"Come on, Jou. Is it really not a crazy idea?" Yuugi countered. Jou opened his mouth, then shut it, repeating the action, causing him to look rather fish like. "And any way's, I doubt that would ever happen."

Jou raised an eyebrow and joined him by the window. "Yuugi, are you still claiming to be straight?"

"Jou, why won't anyone believe me when I say that?"

"Look at yourself and I think you'll have the answer. Now, come on, let's go and actually do something!" Jou yelled grabbing Yuugi's hand and pulling him out of the room after him.

-Line-

He fidgeted with the bracelet he wore around his wrist. He looked in the mirror and bit his lip. Jou had a point. The way he dressed definitely did not scream straight, but he liked to dress like that. It was kind of his thing. He pulled on a shirt, then frowned. "No," he murmured, yanking it off for something different. He had been doing this for nearly an hour now, having several issues with getting dressed.

Part of it was what Jou had said to him the other day. The thing about him not looking straight because of the way he dressed. But he liked girls, which is what bothered him. He didn't want to scream something he wasn't. He wasn't gay, so he didn't want what he was wearing to say, 'Hey, I'm gay!'

And the weird thing there? He also liked also liked men. He was bisexual, not gay, and he would not be called something he wasn't.

He picked up another shirt, one he liked and didn't think screamed gay, but the sleeves were too short. Another shirt, and the sleeves were too tight. It made his arms sting. They were old cuts, but he didn't want anybody to see them. Definitely not Atem. He didn't know what he would do if Atem saw them. Yuugi didn't know who would be worse off at a moment like that.

With a sigh Yuugi yanked on a tank and a sweatshirt. He didn't particular like wearing sweatshirts, but it was better than nothing. It hid the secret that nobody else knew of, and he didn't want anybody to know of. "Getting ready for the day is such a hassle," Yuugi murmured. "And it's not that I'm even seeing anybody today, there's just a chance that somebody might –"

Knock, knock, knock.

"– show up. Like that." Yuugi changed into pants from his shorts, calling, "One moment!" before finally going to answer the door.

"Hey, Yuugi," Atem said as Yuugi answered the door. _/Had they had plans?/ _Yuugi wondered. He didn't think they had.

"Hi, Atem, come in. Sorry for asking, but why are you here? I didn't think we had plans today," Yuugi said, shutting the door.

"We didn't, I just thought I'd come by and at least talk with you for a little while, before I left," Atem said. Yuugi blinked.

"Wait, leave? You're going? Why? Where?" Yuugi asked.

Atem sunk into a seat, and Yuugi stood across from him as he looked away. "I'm not wanted here so I guess I'll be leaving. You don't want me here, and with you acting that way, I'm never going to get what the spirits let me come back here for. I may as well be on my way," he said. Yuugi couldn't believe it. He almost wanted to slap the man. I sounded like he was saying that he didn't believe in him anymore.

And the only thing that came to mind to say was, "Wow, that hurts." And he exited the premise, heading to the one place that he could think of to go to.

The playground at the park.

Fin…

**AN: Hope you enjoyed! Constructive criticism is positively loved. Please leave comments, I love them! :D**

**Read and Enjoy!**

**~ Melinda Penn**


	3. In Your Arms

**AN/Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! Wish I did though…**

**Yuugi: Well this is it, right?**

**Me: That it is.**

**Atem: I still can't believe you made me walk out… who does that? *blabs in a flame-like fashion***

**Me: Shut up, it's my fanfic, you can't flame yourself… wait… can you?**

**Yuugi: Melinda, why are you uploading this at two in the morning?**

**Me: I'm going to camp for a week, so I'm uploading this now. This is it for these two, but I have three more fanfics that are going to kind of fall hand in hand to this one with another pairing I like. But sadly, this one has come to a close. I'm actually kind of in love with this story… that's never happened before… weird… :End AN/Disclaimer**

Yuugi couldn't believe it. He sat there utterly stunned. Atem was gone. Gone. No longer in Unincorporated Grant County. Three days ago, Atem had told Yuugi he was going to leave. But after what? Why was he leaving? Oh, that's right. It was his fault. Yuugi had been pushing him away the entire time that Atem had been there. And for what? Had they really been around each other enough for him to make a decision like that? They had gotten there three weeks ago… Atem and him specifically had gotten together a couple times a week… Yuugi swore under his breath. Okay… so maybe Atem did have a reason… but still! Yuugi finished his drink off quickly. It was another habit he had developed since he had left Domino.

His phone rang, and he glared at it in his drunken stupor. He hadn't spoken to anybody since Atem had left, so he knew it was going to be one of three remainders trying to get him out of his apartment. He let it ring. They called again, and Yuugi still didn't answer. After at least four calls from the person, Yuugi finally picked up the phone. "What?" he asked.

A pause. "Yuugi? This is Jou. I was wondering if I could come over," Jou said. Yuugi made a face. Even in his drunken state he had enough sense to know that that wasn't a good plan.

"I think that's probably a bad idea, Jou," Yuugi said, hearing the slight slur in his voice. He hoped Jou –

"Yuugi, are you alright? You sound… off."

– couldn't hear it. With a sigh, Yuugi murmured, "I'm fine." But the slur was still there, and his comment did not sound even remotely truthful to his own ears.

Another pause. "Yuugi, I'm coming over." And Jou hung up. With a sigh Yuugi made his way to his couch, and awaited Jou and his reaction to him. Yuugi finished off another bottle.

When somebody knocked on the door, Yuugi merely called, "Come in, Jou. The door's unlocked." As Jou walked in, Yuugi knew that he would be stunned.

"Yuugi," Jou began. Yuugi heard him walk over to the couch. He knew Jou was fighting with what to do in this situation. Finally, he murmured, "I thought you hated drinking."

Yuugi sighed and whispered, "A lot of things changed after I left."

"What kind of things?"

"The drinking… I guess I probably drink more than I should… but only when I'm upset. But I suppose drinking is better than the alternative," Yuugi said.

"The alternative?" Jou asked sitting next to him. Yuugi rolled from his side to his back and looked at the ceiling.

Yuugi knew he had to tell him. And the word slipped from his mouth with some effort. "Cutting." He saw Jou's expression change to a mix of hurt and shock. "I don't anymore, but I used to." Yuugi turned back onto his side.

"Yuugi…" Jou said at a loss for words. Finally, "Come back to Domino. I know for a fact that that's where Atem went. Please, come with me. It hurts to see you like this Yuugi. Come back to Domino. Please."

With a frown Yuugi muttered, "I'm sorry, I won't. I can't go back to Domino."

-Line-

It was the fact that Atem was there that Yuugi finally said yes. He had just gotten back what he had lost, and he wasn't about to lose it again. The plane ride home consisted of him sitting next to Ryou, not speaking much. He knew that Jou hadn't told the other two about the fact he used to cut and drank his sorrows away, but he still felt ashamed. Plus there was the fact that he was on his way back to Domino. It had been a while since he had been there, and he was a little bit nervous to say the least. But of what? He had no reason to be nervous, which just made him embarrassed.

"Hey, Yuugi?" Said boy turned to face Ryou. Blushing, Ryou whispered, "I know that you're worried about coming back to Domino, but don't be. I know your grandpa will be glad to have you back, plus… you're doing something I didn't have the confidence to do. Following somebody you love. That takes courage." Yuugi blinked. Nobody else would state it like that. Not Seto because he would never say that kind of thing; and not Jou because he knew that he was the one person Yuugi would snap at if necessary. Ryou was different because Yuugi had always had a soft spot for him. Even being the original man that made Yuugi realize that he was not straight, though that crush had not lasted long, Yuugi always retained a spot in his mind for the boy.

"If I was truly courageous I wouldn't have been so cold that he would leave," Yuugi said. He felt his spite coming back. He looked at Ryou, before asking, "Ryou, what happened between you and your lover? And, pardon me asking, but who was it?"

Ryou looked away, and Yuugi couldn't decide if it was from embarrassment or just lost in thought. "Marik Ishtar could be quite the charmer, when he chose to be," Ryou said. "We hardly ever argued. It was such a different relationship in that sense. He was so… so… calm about everything, and the lacking of arguing was probably why we lasted so long. It was my fault really. We got in a small argument, and I didn't want to just let it go. We never came to a true agreement and we decided that we would take a break after almost an entire month of us arguing. It was… only supposed to be a weekend. But he didn't answer my calls that next Monday or, for that matter, the rest of the week. I was beside myself. I was angry, and I told him my life was better off without him. He left, telling me, he was sorry, which I shot down right away, and telling me that I knew where to find him. Then left to go be with his sister again. We haven't spoken since."

Yuugi's eye's softened as he looked at him. "Why didn't you go after him?"

"I wanted to, believe me, I wanted to so badly, but I never was able to bring myself to actually get up and go. I was afraid of what would happen. Of how he'd react. I'm not confident in those moments, and that's why you're courageous. You have courage, where I just sit back and hide," Ryou finished, fiddling with a piece of hair.

"I'm starting to realize that I've just been hiding for quite some time now. Don't be another me. You should go," Yuugi said quietly.

"But what if I get there and he doesn't want anything to do with me?" Ryou asked. "I don't think I could live with that. And g'd forbid if he had a new lover. I'd… die."

"How about this? A bet. If all goes well with me and Atem, then you are going to go to Marik and at least try and work things out. If things with Atem do not go well, then… then…" Yuugi stopped his speech, unable to think of something the other would have to do. "Uh, suggestions?" Yuugi asked, looking at the now laughing Ryou.

"Suggestions for my own demise? Wow, Yuugi."

"Shut up," Yuugi murmured, blushing as the other laughed. "I'll think of something if that happens. Deal?" Ryou stopped laughing, and paused, contemplating the offer.

"Deal."

-Line-

Yuugi decided this was one of the stupidest things he had ever and would ever do. For over a minute he just stared at the door, unable to make the unchangeable choice of knocking. What would that mean? He didn't even have a plan of what to do or say. He just knew that he had to do this. He couldn't run away. He needed to stop running away. Yuugi bit his lip, and then knocked on the door to the hotel room. _/Atem, you better answer,/ _Yuugi thought, looking at the door. What if he didn't? Then what?

The door opened.

Atem looked at Yuugi for a moment before Yuugi glared at him and said, "Don't you ever pull that again."

"Pull what?" Atem asked looking at Yuugi, unsure as to what to say to him. Yuugi paused, the expression on his face screaming that he was lost for words, and Atem found that he was being dragged into his own apartment.

Yuugi shut the door and leaned against it, and Atem sat in the nearest chair. "Atem, I've spent every day since you left running away. You left. You ran away. Tell me the truth, Atem. What were you running from?"

"I wasn't running away. You didn't want me there. So I took myself out of the picture," Atem finally said, looking Yuugi over.

"Lies."

"How would you know?"

"Because I'm no idiot, Atem. And evidently, you are. I didn't want you to leave, I wanted you to stay there. I wanted you with me, is the point. I lost you once, I didn't want to lose you again. I'm sorry if anything I might've been doing said otherwise, but I'm sick of running away, Atem. I don't want to put up walls anymore just so I have time to escape. I don't want this to happen again. Don't run away, and I won't either," Yuugi said, looking him in the eyes.

There was a long pause, which is when Atem saw it. "Yuugi, are you crying?"

Yuugi looked away as Atem came over from where he seated and gently wiped away a tear. Taking Atem's hand, he whispered, "And we're both running from the same thing."

That's when Atem realized how close they were. He hesitated, it lodging in his mind what Yuugi was saying. "Which would be what?" he breathed, leaning slightly closer.

"I want you, I want this," Yuugi said, no hesitations. Yuugi leaned forward and kissed the former pharaoh softly.

"Yuugi… I… this… this is why I'm back. I never had a relationship. A lover. Never so much as a crush before I laid eyes on you. I was given this chance at life to have it be full of love, with a stable relationship with somebody I cared for deeply, and who cared for me," Atem murmured.

Yuugi paused, then smiled. "See you tomorrow, at six. I'll meet you here and I'll pay. Is it a date?" Yuugi asked.

Atem blinked, then nodded. "It's a date."

And Yuugi left, finding that he was leaving, but not running away. He no longer had any reason to run.

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed a number quickly. "Hello, who's this?" The soft voice of Ryou rang through the receiver. Yuugi smiled.

"A deal's a deal. Now, it's time to keep up your half of the bargain."

He hung up, and his smile broadened, remembering the feeling of Atem on his lips.

Finish.

**AN: The first person who leaves a comment with a guess at who the other fanfic is going to be written for gets a oneshot written by me for any pairing they like of this fandom. Can be as specific or not specific as you want! And for this story, this is the last time I'll say this:**

**Hope you enjoyed!**

**Melinda Penn**


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